


A Choice

by mrgreenside



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Alec Lightwood Deserves Nice Things, Hurt Alec Lightwood, Hurt Magnus Bane, Insecure Alec Lightwood, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Magnus Bane Deserves Nice Things
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-15 09:28:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29806353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mrgreenside/pseuds/mrgreenside
Summary: "You have a choice to make, I will not ask again"What if Magnus didn't crash Alec's wedding?
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Comments: 4
Kudos: 13





	A Choice

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a short preview before the main chapters, let me know if you'd be interested in reading! :)

**What if Magnus didn’t show up at Alec's wedding?**

He was going to be sick. That’s the thought at the forefront of Alec’s mind as he tied and re-tied the black bow tie around his neck. He’d been struggling with it for a long time now, the fabric crumbled and his hands on the verge of shaking. That’s the sight Izzy was greeted with as she peered through her brother's bedroom door, his furrowed brow as he tied, his foot franticly tapping against the wood, most likely unconsciously.

“need any help?” she said tentatively, as she stepped through the door, shutting it behind her and putting herself between her brother's tense figure and his reflection in the full-length mirror.

“apparently so,” Alec said stiffly, offering a vague gesture to his mess of a tie.

Izzy chose not to say anything else as she gently fixed her brother's tie, noticing how he avoiding looking directly at her. Izzy knew how Alec felt, she was one of the few people who could see through him truly, and because of this, she pitied him. He was trapped. They were raised by the same parents, she felt the same pressure her brother had felt, and it's because of this understanding that she couldn’t go against his wishes, even though she knew what a horrible decision he was making. He didn’t love Lydia, she knew that and Alec did too, he never even made an attempt to hide it. But that’s not what this marriage was for Alec. He just wanted to be good, to be what their parents always told him he needed to be.

When you’re young you’re told about marriage all the time. The prince and the princess fall madly in love and overcome all odds. But as you get older the lines become more blurred. Love isn't the most important thing anymore, it never was, it was just a fantasy.

_“Even Shadowhunters fall in love Alec”_

The memory assaulted Alec, and he wanted to retch.

Magnus.

Alec wanted to hate him so desperately for what he did, for making Alec feel this way. For not letting him walk away from the feelings that ran rampant inside his chest when Magnus looked at him like he was the singular most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

_“You have a choice to make... I will not ask again”_

And he hadn't. Since that day Alec had only seen Magnus once, and they haven't spoken about the wedding since then either What else was there to say? He had to do this, for his family, it was his duty. What he did or didn’t feel for Magnus was irrelevant. He knew this in his mind, he just wished he could tell the rest of his body this. His chest felt as if a hole had been punched through it, and he was sick to his stomach.

_“You don’t want to tarnish your family’s perfectly crafted image, now do you?”_

That’s the last thing Magnus had said to him. Alec could see the pain in his eyes, the way he tried to put a barrier between them. Magnus who previously had always spoken to Alec so openly, always seeming so joyful to just be in his presence. Magnus was a breath of fresh air.

But now, Alec could barely breathe.

He was ripped from his thoughts of Magnus’ pained gaze and immediately met with the equally hurt eyes of his sister, who swore to support him no matter what he chose.

“Sorry what?” Alec said, realizing she was expecting a reply to something he had missed.

“I said” she took a deep breath “’ it's time’, we need to get you down the aisle”. Her fake enthusiasm was suffocating.

He gave her a smile that he knew she didn’t buy for even a second before holding his arm out for her.

“Let's do this”


End file.
